Hello, I'm Jon. Great community you guys have here.

I've recently gotten a very strong urge to purchase a stereo system (my father claims that he too got the urge at 20 years of age, hah). So I've been researching speakers, amps, etc. and after reading so many good reviews of Axiom speakers, I'm here.

I can see that there are some pretty knowledgeable people on here, so I'm hoping someone can help me with my first system. I'm aiming to spend around $2200 Canadian on it, so I'm thinking $1200 for speakers, $400 for amp/receiver, $400 for a CD player, and $200 for accessories (wires, cables, stands). If it's going to mean much better performance I will dip into that $200, though.

I'm pretty sure that I've been sold on Axioms, more specifically the M22ti's. I'm not so certain about the sub, but I think the EP125 is enough for a small 9.5'x12'x7' room which opens to a kitchen in a sort of weird way (can e-mail diagram). Please let me know what you think about that though.

The main purpose of this system would be for music, but I'm wondering if I should just go ahead and get a 5.1+ channel A/V receiver instead of a regular stereo/integrated amp. I guess I'm asking if the sound and product quality is noticeably reduced by adding the extra Home Theater functions and components, while staying in my $400 ($500 max) price range. Now, as I predict, this urge isn't going anywhere anytime soon, so to me it seems I should go for the 5.1+ since it's multi-purpose, and will yield more noticeable results as I add more speakers. Then I can later upgrade individual components of the system. Opinions?

I was originally looking at Onkyo's TX-8511, then the TXSR-502, but I don't think Onkyo will ship to Canada...?? So now I'm looking at Denon's AVR-884 (ecost, refurb). Opinions?

Also wondering if it's worth it to get a CD player capable of decoding HDCD's, such as Denon's DCM-380?

On a different note, has anyone heard this Bose Wave Player? What do you think of it?

Thanks a million for any and all advice.

first off, welcome.. i guess i will take the first shot since no one else has..

for $2200, you should be able to build a real nice HT system. 1st, speakers.. the 22's are great speakers for a room your size, as long as they are matched up with a good sub, which we will talk about later. i think you SHOULD ge ahead and get the full 5.1 set-up with a center speaker and surrounds. with a room that size, the VP100, and the QS4's will be more than adequate to produce the quantity and quality of volume you are gonna need. in fact, i think they will still suit your needs once you move into a bigger room, if thats in your near future.

2nd, receiver. i noticed you listed the onkyo 502 and the denon 884. both of those receivers will serve you well. but, if you wish to save a few bucks, look for deals on the last years model receivers, like the onkyo 501, 601 or the denon 1803 or 2803. you can often find great deals on refurb and b-stock equip on ECOST.COM, MACMALL.COM, and DAKMART.COM. just check under the audio/receiver section of each site, and you should find some great deals. just make sure to look for a receiver with at least 5.1, minimum of 75-80 watts per channel, and DTS and Dolby Digital decoding. almost ALL receivers will have multiple inputs/outputs, high DAC processing, lots of DSP modes, and plenty of other bells and whistles. you should be able to find a very good receiver to fit your needs in the $400 range.

i am not very experienced with cd/dvd players, so i dont feel confident enough to guide you in any particular direction. i know denon products are very good, but i dont wish to mislead you, so hopefuuly someone with a little more knowledge will speak up on the cd/dvd player issue.

now to the sub.. it is very important to get the best 'bang for buck' deal on a good sub. i would suggest going with an HSU or SVS sub. you can find a great sub for $300-$400 bucks that will be your best bet. it is very important to get a good sub to fill the low end void that is left with the M22's.

OK, that is my best shot. make sure to look for good deals, and dont shy away from b-stock or refurb.. they are just as good as new most of the time, other than maybe a scratch or two. you can also check the axiom factory outlet to get speakers even cheaper than regular price. good luck, and keep us posted as to your progress.

bigjohn

Welcome, Jon! I'm 20 years old and I -- like my Dad at my age -- just got the urge, too

My budget, needs, and room are eerily similar to yours. Actually, my room is relatively bigger at 11x17, but it also opens up into a kitchen in a weird way as yours does, although our weird ways might be different.

Anyway, I got a pair of M22ti's about a month ago and I absolutely love them. I use my system for music about 99% of the time, but I got the very Denon AVR-884 refurb on ecost that you are considering and it is wonderful. I heartily recommend it. The only thing it is lacking that I could see myself ever needing is pre-outs, but I don't listen at extremely high volumes so I don't know if I'll ever need more power. I certainly haven't felt power to be lacking at this point, but I'm only running two channels so that may change when I go to surround sound sometime down the road. Might be something to consider if you're going to be doing a lot of HT *AND* moving to a bigger room in the future.

For a CD/DVD player, I got the Denon DVD-2200 refurb on ecost. I wanted to be able to play SACDs and DVD-Audio discs, and the refurbed 2200 seems to be the best deal by far when it comes to universal players right now. I don't know if having the ability to play those discs is important to you; if it isn't, check out some of the other Denon refurbs on ecost. HK, Yamaha, and Onkyo are also regularly recommended around here, but the Denon refurbs on ecost are just amazing deals. And don't worry about HDCD support. The 2200 has it, I believe, but I think it's pretty much just a load of marketing BS.

I haven't bought a sub yet, although I will be doing so in the next few months. Supposedly, SVS and Rocket are going to be coming out with ~$400 box sub models any time now, so I want to wait and see how those compare to the HSU STF-2 before making my decision. If your budget allows it, though, I'd recommend looking at some of the other offerings of HSU, SVS, and Rocket. The general opinion seems to be that they are the best subwoofer values around.

For cables and so forth, check out partsexpress.com. Don't waste your money on expensive cables. For stands, check out racksandstands.com, but keep in mind that the M22ti's are wedge-shaped, so they are narrower in back than in front. I made the mistake of getting stands with 8x8 tops, and they really look silly with those little corners of metal sticking out in the back. Oh well.

And whatever you do, don't get that Bose. It's not even anywhere near the same class as Axioms.

@bigjohn: I will definitely check out last years receiver models. I've heard a lot of good things about the subs you've listed as well, so I guess I should check those out. I kind of liked having the sub come from the same company, and thus matching the m22's, but if the performance is going to be that much better I might as well go for an HSU/SVS.

@joshxfoo: I probably won't need those pre-outs anytime soon, and when/if I do need them I think around $400 is not too big of a loss when/if I go to upgrade the receiver. The Denon DVD-2200 sounds interesting, I'll check that out. I was planning to get wires+stands at the local Radio Shack to save a buck or two.

The Bose player was actually something that my Dad+Mom were thinking about getting because of it's small size and supposed phenomenal sound, I told them not to but I wanted to get some more opinions on it.

Thanks for the advice guys.

Wow! A $1000 clock radio. That's amazing.

Those guys gave you some good advice. I would suggest getting the best speakers you can afford (are towers out of the question?), getting by on the receiver (by the time you elect to go 5.1 who knows what will be the standard HT format?), I don't know about the sub - maybe check eBay or Audiogon for a deal on something used, and spend $20 on wires.
Good luck.

Jon, I thought you might be as happy as I was to learn that SVS has finally announced some details on their new $400 sub, the PB10-ISD, and from the response curve alone it looks f*cking ridiculously good.

This deserves its own thread. Doing that now

I'm 20 too (yay?) but I have M60's, VP150, QS8's, for speakers. SVS PB2-Plus for the subwoofer, and Denon AVR-3805 for receiver....



- D

Sounds like your relationship with your parents is quite a bit different than mine. Or, at least, you're not paying downtown Ann Arbor rent

Wow, I'm 20 as well...

I also have the M22's and 884 like Josh does. Both wonderful pieces of equipment (my only complaint is about the lack of preouts as well). I have the STF-2 complementing the 22's and it is a more than ideal match. I don't think you will have any reservations about going with the STF-2 although i would like to have at least tried the SVS. From the review that Spiff did about the differences between the SVS and Hsu subs I'm glad I went the way I went. I like really tight bass. I think this is a revolution for 20 somethings to make a resurgence in the semi-audiophile society.

Daphoid - quit being a technological overacheiver, you big bragger

Since nobody has specifically addressed it, regarding Bose - you won't find too many fans here. The general opinion that that the one thing that company does better than most is marketing. Somehow they have many people convinced that they're the best out there. My parents and my aunt share that opinion too. They can get much more for their $ than a cruddy Bose thingy. I've heard the WaveRadio (my parents) and it sounds good compared to my clock radio, but mine was only $20 while their's was $500. All this stuff is personal preference. They should listen to it and some other systems and then make a decision.

Pete

I am considering the STF-2, but I may or may not be getting really excited about this PB10

@Daphoid: Nice stuff.

@Radspecv: Agreed. I basically told my father that I'm unconvinced, and that he should definitely hear it before committing.

Someone on another list cut open some gold radio shack cables out of curiosity and was vey dissapointed. A few strands of thin wire! This is their best component connection wire I believe. I found some Acoustic Research cables on Amazon for the same price - better quality. Or try the link mentioned above.

Hi again, I'm still obsessing/saving money for this system.

A friend of mine gave me something to think about today, so I'm in need of some advice. Since the M22ti's + a good sub (probably SVS PB10-ISD) is going to cost me over $1000, would I be better off just going for something like the M60's, without a sub?

Thanks.

For music only, yes, IMO.

i agree with bigwill.. if you plan on just listening to music, then the M60's will do everything you want them to. but, if you are gonna be watching any movies, then a sub is almost required. you just get that extra punch on the low end that very few stand alone speakers can give you.

bigjohn

To elaborate a little on the posts from the 'Big' guys, it will all depend on your need for sound below the range of a set of towers.

For movies, sci-fi, action, thrillers, and the like will have lots of low level effects like explosions that go deeper than a set of towers will be able to replicate.

On the music side, unless you are into organ music then I would guess the towers sound great.

I've missed some stuff on the towers alone from music, like the first track of Sting: Brand New Day, but overall, they cover it.

I have the m60s with a rather un-musical but fine for HT sub. The m60s are outstanding for music, but it's true, for serious presence on LFE in movies, the sub is a must.

Well I'm not going to be buying a center or surrounds for a few months after I buy the mains, so during that time they will almost exclusively be used for music. I suppose I could get the M60s, and push the VP100 + a good sub off a little longer, then get some cheap surrounds while I save for the QS4s.

Stupid friend making me rethink my plan, haha.

Thanks people.